"Why Everyone is an Athlete" by John Wood

OK fellas, I just got back from my mother's 70th birthday party my siblings and I had for her this past weekend in Charlotte, NC. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to hook up with my buddy Ray, from www.pushupboard.com, whose company is based in North Carolina, but I was able to see a familiar face in Atlanta.

While staying with my brother in Atlanta, I was able to catch up with my buddy Matt Sloane, the CNN producer who actually conducted my interview. He gave my wife and I a great tour of the CNN's main headquarters in Atlanta. It was great seeing the set for many of my favorite news shows and to see some of anchors and news reporters I see everyday.

In a post later on this week, I'm going to post pictures and give you guys a full account of my weekend, but for today, I wanted to re-post an email that John Wood sent out to all those who subscribe to his Old Time Strongman blog. John has many other websites that I frequently visit, and I highly recommend that you check them out too, especially the first one below:

http://www.bodyweightbasics.com
http://www.FunctionalHandStrength.com
http://www.trapbartraining.com
http://www.oldtimestrongman.com

In the following post, John discusses a quote from old time strongman Al Treloar from 1904!! That's right, over 100 years ago, guys knew the importance of training and exercising for not only athletic competition, but for overall wellness and good health! When I write that I want to have the body of an athlete, that's exactly what I mean--I'm striving for the body of an athlete in the sport of life, as John notes below. Enjoy:

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"Why Everyone is an Athlete" by John Wood

There are many good reasons to train - some obvious and
some not quite so obvious.

I recently ran across something written by Al Treloar
(the subject of a recent blog post) way back in 1904, which makes
a lot of sense to me.

Check it out:

"Next to a clear conscience, a strong body is the most
desirable thing in life and the latter assures the former.
Physical exercise brings bodily improvement and
therefore better health with all that that implies.

Pain is the greatest affliction of human life and good health
which nearly all can get but exercise means freedom from
pain.

The study and habit of exercise calls attention also to the
general laws of health, and create an ambition and desire
for bodily perfection, thus hastening the desired result.

Another aspect of the results of exercise that will appeal
to busy people is the greatly increases capacity for work
produced.

The business man or mental worker who gains a strong
and healthy physical make-up will not only endure more
hours of work but will be able to accomplish vastly more
and better work in the same time than before.

Not only are one's chances of high success increased by
fine bodily vigor, but from the examples one is
almost led to believe that a well-trained and vigorous
body is necessary to the best success."

You'll see a lot of training info written for athletes of one
sort or another, (football, baseball, wrestling etc) but the
fact of the matter is that everyone is an athlete in
the "sport" of life.

The lesson here should be clear:

Whether catching touchdown passes, or doing yardwork,
physical training will help you do it better...

Train hard,
John Wood

"Gurus Gone Wild" by Josh Henkin

OK fellas, I've decided that once a week, I will post something from one of the strength and conditioning coaches I mentioned in my last post. Our inaugural post comes from Josh Henkin, developer of the Sandbag Fitness System. In the about section of his blog, Josh says this about himself:

Josh Henkin is a Strength & Conditioning Coach in Scottsdale, Arizona. He is owner of Innovative Fitness Solutions (www.ifsstrength.com). He has trained professional athletes, composed creative fitness programs, and helped clients rehab from serious injuries. Coach Henkin is also the creator of the Ultimate Sandbag and author of two E-books on Sandbag training.

I found his post on "Gurus Gone Wild" an interesting read that I wanted to pass along. Click on the title to be taken to the original post and leave a comment:

Saturday, May 3, 2008

Gurus Gone Wild!

One of the most common questions I receive is "what do you think of what (enter guru name) said about this or that?" Let's face it I don't blame people, it can be very overwhelming nowadays. I use to feel overwhelmed 13 years ago when I first started in the industry. When I began I was attending seminars like crazy, this was my passion!! Even during these seminars coaches would say conflicting information and often I would leave confused and having what I call "seminaritis".

What is seminaritis? It is a common disease for most coaches and trainers. Seminaritis is when you enter a seminar with one philosophy and after the seminar COMPLETELY change your thoughts because of what was said. I use to be incredibly guilty of this and have seen it with other coaches soooo many times. Why? I believe in my early stages I wasn't completely confident with how I was working with people. I believed anyone giving a seminar must know more! This was probably a good attitude for a young person, however, as the years progressed I became more engrained in my own philosophy of training.

What else happened? I continued to grow more and more experience working with people. Currently I train people 60 hours a week, yep, you can call my assistant to verify this number. Insane, but true. So, just this year I will log almost 3,000 training hours! If we take this to a greater level, if I say I average 40 hours a week (I can only wish) in five years I will complete almost 10,000 hours of working with people. I can tell you in this day and age of internet coaches, very few will have logged that much experience working hands on with people.

So, when I attend seminars now my attitude is very different. Typically I will use the Bruce Lee idea of taking what is useful and disregarding the rest. I will look for ideas of subtle cueing or training concepts that I can relate to with my clients and their goals.

Here is what I DON'T do:

1. Perform a program because it is hard.
2. Perform an exercise just because it is hard.
3. Judge the success of a training session on the intensity of it.
4. Throw out my philosophy, I know it works I have worked with too many successful clients to say otherwise.
5. Listen to anyone that does not work with people daily.
6. Blindly say a method or technique works or doesn't because a Guru said so, this is foolish as almost anything works for a certain amount of time.

This may sound negative, but really it is a positive. My trying to understand how we can always improve what we are already are doing is evolution. Currently I am at a great program that I am looking forward to implementing some great concepts, but it won't change how I work with people. If you boil down all good systems they generally work with very similar principles.

Be careful of those that espouse that they have all the secrets, something completely doesn't work, and more importantly can't tell you from experience whether some ideas have potential or not. I can speak about a lot of different training methods because we have done most of them in my facility. The keyboard is a powerful tool nowadays for good and bad, you have to be the judge though.

Why I Listen to S&C Coaches For Weight Loss

When I started my weight loss journey over 5 years ago, I had no idea all the different twists and turns I was in store for. Hey, I was just some fat English professor who was tired of not seeing his . . . uhhh . . . feet when he looked down. Well, after going through various stages along my journey, I think that I'm now in a position to make some observations about weight loss and management based on my own experimentations and results.

One such observation is that out of all the folks you find on the internet talking about weight loss (e.g., diet authors, fitness experts, weight loss gurus, etc.), I put my money on programs that are developed by certified (and experienced) strength and conditioning coaches. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not endorsing anyone who has CSCS behind their name. I have a few that I personally recommend, but I'll get to them later.

Guys, if you really think about it, when we lose weight, we don't simply want to be skinny. Yes, fitting into smaller size clothing is cool, but as we get older, we definitely don't want to be feeble and weak. So, we not only want to lose weight, but we want to be stronger too. Enter strength and conditioning coaches. Why? Well, it's actually simple. These coaches have the job of getting collegiate, professional, and Olympic level athletes in tip-top shape. I know you're probably thinking, "But what does this have to do with me when I just want to lose weight and not be an athlete?", which is a fair enough question.

Let's take a real life example. Those of us who follow boxing have seen a boxer a couple of months before going to training camp looking a bit on the "plump" side. I don't know, but Fernando Vargas come to mind. Anyway, after three months of camp, not only do they walk in the ring with sub-10% body fat, but they are also primed to operate at their peak level, depending on their training camp of course. Who do you think got this guy in that kind of shape in only three months?

Usually S&C coaches, who are familiar with not only exercises but also exercise nutrition. You simply can't have one without the other, and most guys looking to lose weight usually go the route of the diet authors and their annually changing titles. Or, the bi-weekly changing bodybuilder routines in the fitness magazines at the market. It's not enough to simply diet and exercise. You must have a goal, and, honestly, that goal should be to become as strong as your Joe Average genes will allow, which is way stronger than you think!

When you think about it, a S&C coach's bread and butter is mainly determined by the results s/he gets with his client. After spending the last couple of months reading e-books, websites, and forums of different S&C coaches on the net, here's a list of coaches that I personally recommend. I've been in contact with some, and others don't know me from a can of paint. Nevertheless, their writing has influenced how I approach being conditioned and, more importantly, healthy.

Do they all agree on all points related to fitness or weight loss? Of course they don't! They're all different individuals who have their own take based on their own research and experience working with clients. However, they agree much more than they disagree, which is good to know in this day and age of confusion and misinformation. I've listed these coaches in no particular order, and please note that some of them may not consider themselves to be coaches; oh well, I consider them one and, in the near future, I plan on re-posting information and posts from their blogs on a weekly basis.

Each person on the following list has much information on their blog/website related to topics from gaining strength, building muscle, to losing fat in a no BS fashion! Don't believe me? Click on their respective names and see for yourself:

• Steve Maxwell
• Mike Mahler
• Steve Cotter
• Josh Henkin
• John Alvino
  
• Alwyn Cosgrove
• Jesse Ferrugia
• Craig Ballantyne
• Dan John
• John Wood
• Ross Enamit
• Paul Zaichik
• Jamie Hale
• Alan Aragon
• Got Built? - (Did you really think I'd have all guys?)
  

Look forward to an article from Josh Henkin (www.sandbagexercises.com) that I plan on posting later this week.

When Willy Wouldn't Wake-up ... Part I

Hey, before I jump into what this week's post, I'd like to personally thank all my readers, friends, and family who have congratulated me and my new wife, Crystal, on our recent marriage; we really appreciate it. However, let me be clear about something fellas. Marriage has not tamed the burning desire I have to complete my journey and share what I've learned along the way. If anything, as I stated in my last post, it has motivated me that much more!

To my female readers, whom I appreciate and respect, I have to warn you that this post is all about the male love muscle (i.e., Willy). So, you've been warned ;)

Guys, I believe that it's time that we have a real heart to heart about our bodies, especially our main reproductive organ. I know many of you that read my blog simply want to lose weight or get tips on how to build a lean and muscular body, so the following discussion may seem a bit out of place if not too damn personal to be sharing with the blogosphere.

Hey, if I'm able to put half-naked pictures of myself on the internet and announce my marriage to someone who is half my age on my blog, do you really think that sharing a story about my problems getting an erection is too personal, especially when it was a direct result of my weight loss? OK, before you answer, take a look at some pics of my back that the wifey took of me today, sit back, and read on to see why I was literally on the verge of committing suicide . . .




"Wait a minute, I'm too damn young to have problems getting it up!" was the first thought that ran through my mind when my Willy (read: penis) stayed asleep when it was time for us to go to work. Yes, I realized that I was no longer the sexual stud, or at least that's what I thought of myself, of my late teens and early 20s, but I've been able to "hold my own" in the bedroom without the thought of not keeping an erection. Well, a couple of months ago this was far from the case, and it has taken me this long to research and figure out just what in the hell was going on!

OK, let me start from the beginning. As you guys know, I've been working out and dieting on a consistent basis for more than three years now; the first two years of my journey were basically hit and miss. During this time, I've come across fitness books that dealt with the various ways that bodybuilders (natural & "not so" natural) achieve their ripped and defined physiques. A couple of these books talked about the relationship between sex hormones and working out, but I usually skipped over these chapters since I wasn't interested in becoming a bodybuilder and they were too damn technical. I'm an English professor for christ's sake.

Well, this was a big mistake on my part because who else would know and understand how to achieve low body fat percentages and the body's reaction to this than those who participate in a sport where having excess body fat is a liability. So, I had to ditch the muscle head stereotype that I had of bodybuilders and started to learn what processes, especially hormones, that are involved in becoming lean and ripped. However, I'm getting a little ahead of myself . . .

Alright, there I am staring, or should I say goggling, at the sexy body of a woman who wanted to do things to me that's probably illegal in most southern states. Many thoughts were running through my mind, and all of them would be rated TV-MA; however, I realized that there was one piece missing in this sexual puzzle which seemed to be having G rated thoughts: Willy was still asleep! I didn't think much of this as I just chalked it up to pre-intercourse jitters with a new partner that I know most fellas can relate to. So, I didn't think much of it and figured that everything would snap back to normal, and I would chuckle to myself about this a little later.

30 minutes later, I'm lying on my back, staring at the ceiling, and assuring the puzzled woman next to me that it usually doesn't take this long for me to get an erection and no it's not her. After another 15 minutes of failed attempts to wake Willy up, I decided that it was simply one of those un-explainable sexual thangs that we men experience once in a long while or even in a lifetime. Well, that lame excuse only held up until my next attempted, and failed, romp in the sack.

Guys, this is one time that I really wasn't interested in three strikes and you're out, so, putting my male ego aside, which you know is not an easy task, I finally decided that I could no longer do my ostrich impersonation about my little problem. After making sure to give away all the knives and sharp objects in my house, I sat down with my books to try and figure out why Willy went on an extended . . . uhh . . . prolonged vacation.

I felt that if I could deal with my problem myself, then I wouldn't have to explain to my doctor why a 36 year old man, who works out 5-6 days a week, and is obviously in great shape is having problems with maintaining an erection. Fortunately, I didn't have to go too far for some possible answers.

My readers know that I'm a big fan of Mike Mahler's ebooks and training DVDs. In his e-book, The Aggressive Strength Solution For Size And Strength, he devotes a chapter to the secret relationship between sex hormones and training. Basically, he gives an overview of the hormones Testosterone (T) and Growth Hormone (GH) and how they are affected by the different types of training one does; he also quotes from a couple of other books. One book in particular stood out from the rest because of its title: The Care and Feeding of a Penis by Dr. William Wong.

Considering my little problem, and not to mention the suicidal thoughts I was having, you can imagine how fast I ordered this e-book.

* * *

Preview of Part II:

• why your body hates you but really loves you
• why middle-age starts at 35
• estrogen dominance, bitch tits, and moody men
• big "hypothalmus" is watching
• natural/herbal testosterone boosting supplements
• herbal erection and sexual performance enhancers (no BS!)
  

Mr. Low Body Fat Ties The Knot in Vegas!

That's right, you didn't mis-read the title of this post. I got married to a very beautiful woman on this past Friday in Las Vegas (no Elvis jokes please!). Although I vowed to never marry again after my first failed marriage, what do you do when you're bitten by the love bug?

As with my diet and workout routine, my marriage is far from conventional, as Crystal is one of my former students. Feel free to read this article that was done on us in a local newspaper that details what I'm talking about.

Anyway, here are a couple of shots from our wedding and this link is to more pictures. Feel free to check them out and leave a comment if you wish. I ask my readers to please bear with me as we move to our new home to start our lives together; however, I'm still in training and have only taken a week off.

Hell, I was up at 5am this morning getting back on track with my workouts and ready to bring this challenge to a close, in one month's time. I can't believe that I'm now even more motivated to get lean and ripped and be the proverbial trophy husband for my new wife (aka Mrs. Low Body Fat).

Still Focused Guys . . . Don't Worry!

I know that I've been quiet for over a week now, so I just wanted to assure you fellas that I'm still on my 12 week transformation and progressing along nicely I might add ;) Let's just say that I'm in the process of giving away my size 36 pants since I'm now fully in a size 34! Now, this is a far cry from the tight size 48 pants I use to sport when I was at my heaviest weight.

Talked to our friend Wendy, from Wendybird Fotos, and we've tentatively setup the 1st of March for our next photo shoot which I'm really amped about. I believe that these pictures will be a major improvement from my last photo shoot.

Starting to clearly see your veins under your skin is truly one of those things that you have to experience for yourself. Nevertheless, I'm still concerned about getting cut and bleeding out faster than I did when I had a thick layer of fat covering them. Well, I guess that's the price one pays for trying to get lean and ripped.

I went to my 20 year Congressional Page High School Reunion over the holiday weekend. It was really an interesting experience since I had not seen any of my classmates in 20 years. Well, I had a blast, and we simply picked up where we had left off. Since I was not fat when I was 16, many of my classmates could not believe my before pictures that I showed them. And, I felt honored to have folks come up to me and talk about their current or past weight problems. I truly believe that this is an epidemic that we as a society need to address more aggressively.

This was a good break from my routine, as I let my hair down and indulged myself with foods that I normally don't eat; however, I was still very mindful of my portion size and not stuffing myself needlessly. All that being said, if you're in DC, go to Pizzeria Uno in Union Station and make sure to save room for the WOW Chocolate dessert. You'll thank me later.

Finally, I wanted to leave you with an inspirational quote that I picked up from one of those Airline magazines that I've actually added to my email signature:

"Excellence is the result of caring more than others think is wise, risking more than others think is safe, dreaming more than others think is practical, and expecting more than others think is possible."

Oh, I almost forgot. I plan on dropping a BOMB on Monday that you will not want to miss . . .

In Search of Sandow Blog Updated!

Well, it's the end of the 5th week of my 12 week In Search of Sandow Body Transformation, so I've updated the blog with information on how my diet and workouts are going. I've also posted a couple of teaser pictures of how I'm looking now, but these are just precursors to the full-body ones I'll post at the mid-way point. Thanks for all your continued support as I continue to bust my ass to get this damn six pack!

http://insearchofsandow.blogspot.com/

Let Your Mortality Serve As Motivation

Guys, I have something a bit personal to share with you today. I got a call from my mom yesterday, and she told me that my Auntie had finally passed on after a four year long battle with cancer. Since my mom had been to see her the last couple of weekends, I knew that she was literally on her death bed, so the news wasn't that shocking to me. However, thinking back from the time that she was first given 4 months to live, more than four years ago, until she finally died on this past Thursday, compelled me to share something with you, but I ask that you bear with me as I make my point.

My Auntie was a strong and proud woman who taught me many things, especially the family gardening secrets that she learned from my great-grandma. So, my avid love for gardening or just growing plants in general was definitely nurtured by her. She also constantly encouraged me as I worked and struggled my way through my Masters and PhD programs by allowing me to rent out her basement. I was experiencing really tough times as a poor, hungry, and jobless grad student, and I would have been homeless if it weren't for her taking me in.

Nevertheless, one thing that I observed from afar these past four years is my Auntie chasing after one treatment to the next in an attempt to "beat" her disease. While her warrior spirit was admirable, I can't help but shake my head because she spent the last four years of her life constantly in pain from one experimental chemo treatment to the next. There was one treatment where they had to put her hands and feet in cold water because of the heat generated by the chemicals they were pumping into her! Fellas, the truth is that my Auntie was, like many of us, afraid to die, and this fear caused her to miss out on possibly the most precious time of her life: her last years.

So, what in the world does this have to do with my weight loss blog? In a word, it has everything to do with not only weight loss, which is only a by product of our real goal here--taking control of You! Yes, I've read many books on nutrition and exercise that have been extremely valuable on my journey; however, there was one book that crystallized everything for me. After reading Dr. Wayne Dyer's Your Erroneous Zones, I had a new perspective on life. Yes, I'm talking about the same balding guy that seems to be on PBS 24/7 talking about his latest books or CDs. Honestly, I can't vouch for any of his other books or products since I haven't read or purchased them. Your Erroneous Zones was all that I needed at that point of my life, and reading it literally changed my life because it caused me to change my way of thinking.

I strongly encourage you guys to read this book, which was first published the year I was born, because it helped me to get over the fact that we are all going to die one day, and that fearing it was absurd. Why fear the inevitable? Yes, I know that many of us fear the unknown or the unexpected, but that doesn't keep those things at bay or even eliminate them, does it? Of course it doesn't because if it did, my Auntie would still be alive. We can will ourselves to live longer than the "doctors" have given us, but in the end our mortality wins out. So, is this something that we should cower in the face of or grit our teeth over? Hell no!

You use it at motivation to have the life that You want to live in the body that You want to have. People often ask me why I have set so many goals and challenges for myself. Well, it's actually quite simple. I realize that this is the only life that I will consciously live in the body I currently have. Now, there are hundreds of beliefs about what happens after we die, which is fine for explaining what happens after we stop breathing. But, what about all the years we have in between our first and last breath? Are we simply going to live a mundane life of unfulfilled dreams and aspirations, waiting for that dreadful day when we die?

I can't speak for you, but I believe like one of my fitness idols, Jack LaLanne. In an interview about his longevity, the interviewer asked Jack does he think about dying, and he scoffed at the question and told her that, "I'll think about dying when I'm dead!". Now, this is exactly the type of attitude about living life that I'm getting at guys.

For me, I'm going to live my life to the fullest, aggressively (thanks Mike), and without fear of dying. My life's goal is to complete as many challenges and goals that I set for myself and to live my life without regret of what I should have done or what I could have done. I think that a verse from Dave Matthew's song Lie In Our Graves sums it up best:

I can't believe that we would lie in graves
Wondering if we had spent our living days well
I can't believe that we would lie in graves
Wondering what we might've been
I can't believe that we would lie in graves
Wondering if we had spent our living days well
I can't believe that we would lie in graves
Wondering what we might've been

Is this the person you want to be? Lying on your death bed, wondering about all the things you said you wanted to do, but never did. Talking about all the accomplishments you decided not to pursue because you short-changed your own abilities. Are you really going to live your life wondering what you might have been if you had stood up and taken charge of your destiny?

Yes, I blog about weight loss and my journey to getting lean and ripped; however, these things are secondary to my goal of living a full, satisfying, and successful life, which I define for myself. I think this gets lost in all of the before and after pictures, debates about counting calories, losing weight as a hobby, etc that I blog about. Nevertheless, if you are simply losing weight for cosmetic or narcissistic reasons and haven't closely analyzed how this is part of you taking control of your life, then you're sadly missing out on the bigger picture.

* * *

As I plant my traditional and hydroponic gardens this summer, I'll think about my Auntie and the times that we've spent together. However, I'm going to remember my Auntie as she was before the last four years of her life because this is when she was focused more on living instead of focusing on trying not to die.

The Skill of Losing Weight - Series Introduction

Five years ago, I decided to take control of my life once and for all, just like the countless number of guys will do this year. So, what makes the start of their journey different from mine? Did I know more than they did before I started? Well unless having back issues of Men's Health made me some sort of weight loss stud, then I guess I did. But, we know that wasn't the case.

Now that I've lost my extra chub, I get "So, what's the secret Muata?" or "How can I lose weight like you?". Well fellas, one of my New Year's gift to you is that I'm going to answer that question for you; however, I'm going to take a different approach . . . a really different approach.

This year, I strongly encourage you to approach losing weight as you would learning a new skill or hobby. That's right, I want you to view weight loss as you would learning how to play an instrument or a new dance. OK, let me back up and explain why I think this is an approach that you should adopt for this year.

Believe it or not, when I'm not obsessing about getting my six-pack, I actually have many hobbies and skills I've picked up over the years. For instance, I'm a musician, writer/poet, hydroponics/traditional gardener, part-time Linux addict (go open source!), salsero, and kettlebell enthusiast, to name a few. And you probably thought I was just some guy who likes to post semi-nude pics of himself on the net, eh? Well, my skill level in these hobbies range from a step above a beginner to intermediate; although I've not mastered any of them, it's OK because I have the basics down and, therefore, a solid foundation to build on.

Guys, you can view weight loss as no different than any of the hobbies you currently have. For example, I don't care if you've had dreams of being the next Victor Wooten (where are my bass players?), you had to start with learning the basic bass chords and keys first, right? Of course you did, and I believe that you had to practice too, didn't you? OK, I know these may seem obvious for anyone wanting to learn to play an instrument, but I believe that these, and a couple more, apply to weight loss also.

On my five year plus weight loss journey, I've come to recognize that there are five common characteristics of learning a hobby or new skill that can be applied to losing weight too:

1. Take the time to learn the basics FIRST!
   
2. Practice, Practice, Practice
3. Be patient with your progress
   
4. Look for other like minded hobbyists
5. Don't worry about making mistakes

In my upcoming series of posts, which will span the next couple of weeks, I'm going to elaborate on each characteristic separately. So, stay tuned and get ready to pick up, and dust off, an old hobby you may have abandoned back in the day because, whether you realize it or not, it's going to help you lose weight!

The Bells Are Back . . .

As I alluded to in a previous post, one of my kettlebells was stolen from the fitness center in my apartment complex. OK, let me back up to the beginning. In May of this year, I moved from a four bedroom/two bathroom house to a two bedroom apartment. I had to sell all of my weightlifting equipment (i.e., power rack, dumbbells, benches, etc.) because I simply did not have the space. So, after reading one of Pavel's books, I became familiar with kettlebells and quickly ordered a set of 35lbers. I started using Mike Mahler's Kettlebell Solution for Fatloss and Mental Toughness DVD, especially the High Frequency Training (HFT) Double KB routine.

Following Mike's DVD, I was able to improve my technique and strength to the point that I needed to move from my 35lb KBs to a set of 54lbers. Since I live on the third floor, I decided to leave my KBs in the fitness center. Never in a million years did I expect someone to steal a 54lb. KB, but it happened! So, I was left with one 54lb KB since I gave my lighter KBs away. I decided that this would be a good time to take a break from KB training and try out bodyweight exercises wearing a weighted vest, and I'm glad that I did because now I'm going to combine both in my training.

Well, as the new year approaches, I'm happy to report that the Bells are back! No, the sorry bastard who stole my KB didn't have a change of heart and returned my shit. On the contrary, I picked up three new sets of KBs: 54s, 62s, and 70s. My previous set of 54s were from lifelineusa.com and are "obviously" really nice bells, but the shipping costs is a killer. So, now it seems that Apollo KBs has the right idea because they've opened a couple of distro centers in different parts of the country and reps are popping up everywhere. Here's a shot of my babies:

They have a smooth texture like Ader KBs, but the shape is pretty much identical to the lifeline bells. You need to use chalk with them for grip, but that's a small price to pay compared to not having to pay just as much for shipping as you do the damn KB. So, check craigslist.org to see if there is a distributor in your area.

As I was taking pictures of my new bells, I looked around and decided why not show you guys how much of a workout minimalist I am. OK, in addition to using my bells, I only use four other pieces of equipment. My weighted vest is at work, so I don't have a picture of it, but it's one that I picked up from Walmart for $45. Here are the other three:

Door Gym from newyorkbarbells.com


Ultimate Body Press & Cheap Walmart Ab Wheel

Fellas, you don't need a lot of equipment to get ripped: the closer I get to my goal the more I'm really starting to realize that. I'll give you more details in my next post, but I'm going to start a 12 week training cycle at the beginning of the year. And, I'm only going to use the KISS philosophy with only the equipment above. I'm really considering doing a video-blog; we'll see.

Anyway, 2008 is going to be the year that a reformed fat English professor is going to complete his transformation and inspire fat guys all over the world to not settle for simply losing weight or having a normal body fat %.

No, there are guys out there who have always wondered how does it feel to have a six-pack or a body of an athlete; you know who you are. Yeah, you're the guy who hears women talk about how fine or hot Brad Pitt is and wonders how does it feel to be lusted after. How does it feel for a woman to say, "Can I see your abs?". Well, even for someone who has bashfully lifted up his shirt since I have loose skin, let me tell you that it feels damn good! Listen, I don't care how much weight you have to lose; if you are the guy I'm talking about here, let me assure you of something: In every obese, overweight, or simply fat ass guy, there is a Mr. Low Body Fat waiting patiently to be unleashed . . . so, are you going to let him out?

Approximately 5 years after starting my weight loss journey, I realize now that I started off wanting to lose weight, but along the way I started to chase after what I like to call Sx3, which stands for Six pack, Shredded physique, and Strength!

Stay tuned and hold on . . .

Plateau Does Not Equal Failure

OK, so you've been losing weight at a pretty steady clip and then, all of a sudden, you stop seeing the numbers on the scale go down. Panic starts to set in, your palms get sweaty, and all of your failed weight loss attempts of the past start flashing before your eyes. Sound familiar fellaz? I'm sure it does because anyone who has tried to lose weight has experienced a stall. Hell, I know that I have on many occasions.

As I've already discussed in my post on the Atkins Diet, I went through pretty much a one year plateau after losing 50lbs. It was a frustrating, yet rewarding, experience for me in many ways. I don't suggest that people follow my take a whole year to figure out you need to change something attitude; however, I now realize that while I was definitely not pleased with the pitiful weight loss numbers on the scale, I wasn't regaining my lost weight either. For the first time on my journey, I felt as though I really did have a little control over my bodyweight. Yes, one can argue that I really didn't lose any weight that year since our bodyweight can fluctuate up to five pounds on a daily basis, but that's taking the glass is half empty approach.

An alternative view, and just as valid, is that I was able to control my weight for an entire year by exercising and eating low-carb. Also, we have to remember that the scale is just one tool that we use to see how we are progressing on our weight loss journey. Keep in mind that you also have a tape measure, a full length mirror, and your clothes to see if you are still losing inches. If you are weight training, then you can expect to go through a period of possible gains on the scale because of your muscle growth. Those new to weight training or seasoned vets returning after a lay off will see the most initial growth in strength and size.

Next, you have to figure out how you can burn more daily calories. Don't always look to slashing more calories first. Guys, this is the wrong approach and one that leads to yo-yo dieting and weight loss. It's really simple: look for more ways to burn not cut calories. Stop parking so close to the front door of the mall. Get off the escalator and get out of the elevator and take the stairs. And, don't even think about getting on those moving sidewalks in the airport! Do these activities burn hundreds of calories? Nope, not even close, but they burn calories nonetheless and that's the point. To break through a plateau, try and figure out how you can holistically burn more calories first through a structured exercise routine (think weight resistance before cardio) and spontaneous activities like those I've mentioned.

Now, if you know that you are eating more calories than your maintenance level, then you need to do what I've said above and eat the number of calories that you've already calculated that you should be eating. Hey, don't beat yourself up and get down on yourself because I'll let you in on a little secret. The more you concentrate on eating whole, unprocessed foods, the easier it is to clean up your diet. It takes time, and it's not easy. But, man is it ever rewarding!

For Guys Who Need To Lose 100lbs

You know, it's pretty funny. I never thought that I would be writing a post for guys who need to travel the same road that I have. When I started my weight loss journey back in 2003, I didn't do it with the thought of losing more than 100lbs. There's no way I could have continued through the many setbacks and mis-steps I have experienced if I started off saying to myself that I'm going to set out to lose 100lbs. Setting realistic and attainable goals really worked for me even when I was experiencing a plateau.

This lead me to think about the countless number of guys out there who are standing in my former wide width shoes. (Hey, you gotta love New Balance and the many wide widths they come in.) So, I decided to pass on a couple of pointers that are targeted specifically towards all my Big Dawgs, which are those guys who need to shed 100 or more lbs. In true MLBF style, I've decided to give you some bullet points that I feel are crucial to you achieving your goal(s):

• Set small and reachable goals
  This may seem obvious, but it's really not, especially when you have a lot of weight to lose. What most non-obese (including those considered overweight) don't understand is the feeling of being trapped in a morbidly fat body. This stifling feeling is something that you have to experience to fully appreciate what I'm talking about. Since we feel trapped, the only thing we really care about is losing the damn weight, and, unfortunately, many of us could care less how we do it. This desperation is one of the reasons the weight loss industry is a multi-billion dollar business. Yes, I know that you have a lot of weight to lose and, if you could, you'd like to snap your fingers and have that gut disappear, right? Of course you would. Hell, I had many tearful nights sitting at my computer wishing that I could simply chop off all of the mounds of flesh (and fat) that rested in my lap.
  
  Listen fellas, snap out of it, OK? There is no magic pill, operation, or even diet that will cause you to lose weight as fast as you would like to, so forget about it. Make up in your mind that you want to average losing no more than 1-2 lbs a week and remember that it's not all about the journey, but what you learn while you're on it.
  


• Stop Dieting and Make a Life-style Change
  If you are serious about losing the weight and keeping it off, then you are going to have to be serious about the life-style change that you are going to have to make. Most folks go on a diet and think that once they reach their goal weight, then they can go back and eat whatever they want. Man, how foolish this type of thinking is. This is the mentality that must die! There's one important thing that I want you to etch into your weight loss psyche: Once you start to lose weight, you will never be able to eat the same amount of food that you did prior to losing weight. If you do, you will regain the lost weight. That's right, I want you to have a hard look at the amount of food you need to consume to stay at your current size. Take a mental picture and kiss it goodbye because to lose weight and keep it off, you'll never be able to consume that amount again. Oh, and a true life-style change is one that happens over time (i.e., months, years) and not something that you can master in a couple of weeks.
  


• Stop Living in the Past
  Yes, yes, I know that you use to play football in high school or college, and you were the man on the basketball courts back in the day. I'm sure that you also had a nice bod at that time too. Well, those days are gone my friend, so let 'em go. Stop looking at your current self with nostalgic thoughts of how you use to be able to do a hundred reps of (fill in the exercise here) before you let yourself go, yadda-yadda-yadda. Bredren, please let it go. You'll never reclaim the years of your youth, no matter how badly you reminisce about them. Hey, I was just as guilty as many of you. I would often tell people how I could actually dunk a basketball (on the shorter, outdoor courts) back when I was a freshman in college, and then go on to tell them about how active and athletic I was (was being the key word here). There's no need to live in the past guys when you can create a healthier and stronger you NOW!
  
  Man, I would love to meet my former self now. That 18 year-old punk couldn't hang with me in any activity you name. I can do more pushups, pullups, dips, lift heavier weights, run faster, farther, etc. now than I could when I was just starting college. Basically, I would kick my young ass. Guys, get to the point where you feel, as I do, that not only is youth wasted on the young but it's grossly overrated . . .
  


• Only Compete Against Yourself
  OK, I know that we men are usually competitive creatures by nature; however, you need to redirect and focus your competitive spirit towards yourself. If you workout in a gym, don't gaze in amazement at the guy who looks like he's going to be on the next cover of Men's Health (one of my goals). There's no need to put anyone on a pedestal or make yourself feel as though you are less than they are because you have so much weight to lose. Hey, you had absolutely nothing to do with that guy getting buff, just as he had nothing with you becoming obese. So, why even compare or even try to compete with him. He's not your opponent--your soon to be former fat self is. You are striving to be the best (fill in your name here) there can be, and only one person can determine that: you!


• Don't Drink From the Goblet of Haterade
  My friends get a kick out me talking about drinking from the Goblet of Haterade. OK, for those of you not keeping up with the current Urban American slang of the day, let me explain what I mean by this. First, when someone is extremely envious of another person, you can say that s/he is "hating" (i.e., jealous) on the other person. And, Haterade is simply a play on combining the words "hate" with the sports drink "Gatorade". OK, I think you get the picture now.
  
  Just as you don't compete with anyone else, don't envy or "hate" on them either. This is a trap that most fat guys get caught in. Being jealous of someone because they've lost weight or are losing more weight than you is simply juvenile. Instead of hatin' on someone, use that energy to be motivated by them instead. Download their pictures and use them for motivation and not an invitation to sip from the goblet. Right now, I'm using D'Angelo's music video Untitled as pure motivation to get lean!
  


• Stop Worrying About Loose Skin
  Yes, you are going to have loose skin, especially if you've been obese for some time. Start explaining this to yourself now, so that when it becomes more noticeable, you won't completely freak out. However, the good news is that your skin is a living organ that sheds and rebuilds itself. So, how much your skin comes back after weight loss depends on your diet composition, age, how long you've been obese, and your genes. It's also important to keep your skin hydrated by using lotion or body creme after bathing. I've found that drinking lots of water does wonders for your skin too. Finally, realize that your skin is very thin and what most people call loose skin is actually loose skin that still has fat under it. To get an idea of how thin your skin is, pinch the back of your hand. I'm currently battling with the last bit of fat on my belly, and I can tell you that it's not an easy task. Now, I can fully understand why people get tummy tucks or lipo after losing a lot of weight since you have to fight against your bodies metabolic adaptations to your new, and improved, active life-style change.
  


• It Ain't Easy
  Losing weight is not an easy task; the failure rate of people to maintain the lost weight in this country proves this point. However, it is not an impossible task and it does not take the strength of Hercules either. The problem with many of us is that we get caught up in the all or nothing mentality. Either we are 100% on a diet or we are 100% a failure and decide to go back to our unhealthy ways of eating. Guys, stop swinging from one end of the pole to the next. What you are embarking upon is a life-style change that you will continue to refine for as long as you live! If you are serious about losing and keeping the weight off this time, then you need to realize that this is a process that you will have to not only be an active participant, but you will need to take the leading role. Yes, you are going to have to take charge of your health and be willing to admit that either you don't understand how to lose weight, which my last bullet addresses, or you understand the theory side and are having problems putting it into practice. Either way, the road to weight loss is full of ups and downs, which is no different from the life you're living right now. So, keep telling yourself that you can handle it.


• Feed Your Brain to Lose the Weight
  I love having this phrase as the signature for my email and forum posts. Oh, I have to give credit to my brother Elgin for coining this catchy phrase that pretty much embodies the message that I'm trying to bring to my readers. If you don't have a good and working understanding of how the body loses and gains weight and how diet composition is factored into the equation, then you are bound to following someone else's plan. And, following someone else's plan is like trying to live someone else's life. You need to become the authority of your body and health. Stop sitting on the sideline of your life as a passive observer, simply giving the reigns of your health over to your doctors. As I've said before, there's more than enough information on the internet and in the books that I've suggested on my blog for you to make very intelligent decisions about your health, diet, and exercise. Look, your brain is a large muscle and learning new information, in addition to meditating, is a great mental workout.
  

While on my journey, I've come across very inspiring websites. However, I think that you'll find the two following weight loss stories and pictures very inspiring. Be sure to drop them a line:

• Mike Ogorek - who went from 333lbs. to 196lbs.
  
• Mike Boyd - who went from 440lbs. to 186lbs.
  

Eating Low-Carb Primer for the Average Joe

OK, so let's say it all together:

If you want to lose weight, you need to burn more calories than you consume, and if you want to gain weight, you must consume more calories than you burn. Calories count in weight management and don't let anyone fool you into thinking any differently.

Now that I've made my point about calories, I think it's time that I give you guys a primer on why you not only have to workout like real men, to steal a line from Pavel, but you need to also eat like one!

I'm setting the bar pretty high for this post fellas because I've challenged myself to give you a useful overview of why you should be eating low-carb (LC) and which approach to explore all in one post. They'll be no part two to this post, so I hope to make every word count.

Since there a tons of blogs, websites, and books geared towards LC eating, I'm going to focus on what I've discovered to be the basics that one needs to understand as to why eating this way will help you achieve your weight loss goal of reducing your body fat % better than eating a low-fat or, so-called, balance diet. I believe that the following bullets with detailed explanations after each one will help me achieve my one post goal with this topic. Well, let's see:

• Don't fear saturated fat or cholesterol
  
  I've decided to start out with the most controversial point of all when it comes to eating LC. Now, before you dismiss me as another crack, ask yourself: "Who told you that eating fat was bad for you?" Also, if you're my age (36) or older, you remember a time when this nation was not so fat-phobic. Guys, the notion that saturated fat and cholesterol will "clog" your arteries and lead you to a life of colon cancer, or any other form that's the flavor of the month, has all been based on faulty and questionable research. We can attribute our fears of saturated fats and cholesterol to the works of one researcher from Minnesota, Dr. Ancel Keys. His "Seven Countries Study" is the foundation of today's diet-heart theory, which is also called the lipid hypothesis.
  
  If you are currently trying to lower your cholesterol or are trimming fat from your steak, then you need to thank this guy and his extremely biased study for it. You see, Dr. Keys's study shows that out of the seven countries he compared in his study (i.e, Finland, Greece, Italy, Japan, Yugoslavia, the Netherlands, and USA), those that ate less saturated fat and had lower overall cholesterol levels had less incidences of CHD (coronary heart disease). The only problem with his hypothesis is that he cherry-picked the countries that he compared to fit his already pre-conceived notions about saturated fat and cholesterol. There was data available from 22 countries at the time of his study, and he, lo and behold, chose the countries that supported his hypothesis. Well, as Dr. Malcolm Kendrick, has pointed out, if Keys had used data from Finland, Israel, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, France, and Sweden he would have received the opposite results, which is the more saturated fat one eats and the higher their cholesterol levels, the less incidences of CHD will occur!
  
  But, what about all the studies that have come out since then that shows a relationship between saturated fat, high cholesterol, cancer, and CHD?
  
  I'd thought you'd never ask. It's pretty simple. All of these studies, despite not showing that our fat-phobic and cholesterol fearing eating habits have actually reduced incidences of CHD one iota, are done with people consuming a high saturated fat and high carbohydrate diet. The news media conveniently leaves this fact out and reports that it's saturated fat that will cause you to keel over from a heart attack; however, carbs, the darling of today's PC based nutrition, are never mentioned because we've been told that our body prefers to burn carbs for energy, which is a good lead-in to my next bullet.
  
  
• Our bodies can use fat or glucose as sources of energy, and it prefers to burn fat
  
  This explained one burning question I've always had about our bodies. OK, I believed that we need to eat complex carbs to provide our bodies with the energy it needed to perform its daily duties. Well, this is what I read in all of my muscle mags and the various commercials and news reports backed this up, but I never fully understood why our bodies didn't simply store its reserve energy as carbs instead of fat. Hey, I'm an English professor, so if it wasn't about how to properly use a semi-colon, I didn't think too much of it. Well, this changed when I read that our bodies' stored energy is not only fat, but it's actually saturated fat! Yes, the belly that you usually rub after a good meal is full of saturated animal fat that is similar in composition to the same fat that they tell you to trim off your meat. When you eat LC, you cause your body to pull from its stored energy reserves (read: fat) to perform all of its required tasks, and for parts of the body that can't use ketones for energy, the body can actually create the glucose it needs through a process called glucogenesis.
  

• Understand the role of insulin and glucagon
  
  Many LC books talk about the role of insulin as if that's the only hormone you need to know about to control your weight. Well, you need to also familiarize yourself with insulin's dance partner hormone: glucagon. These two work together because when one's body has an abundant amount of one hormone, the other isn't produced as much. This reciprocal relationship can be seen in the following example. Let's assume that you are what folks in the LC community call fat adapted, which simply means that you have followed a LC way of eating for more than 3-4 months and have kept your total daily carb intake to 100g or less.
  
  In this scenerio, you will have an ample amount of glucagon flowing in your system telling your pancreas to continue to produce ketones that your body will use for energy. Once you eat a high carb meal that sends your blood sugar level above a certain point (i.e., 36 microunits per mililiter for you science nerds), your insulin levels will rise to clear your blood of the excess glucose that's not used immediately for energy. If not, your blood will be like syrup and, as you can imagine, that ain't a good thing. So, as your insulin levels rise, your glucagon levels begin to taper off because your body is switching from using its fat stores for energy to using the glucose in your blood. Once it has used the glucose in your blood for energy, anything left over is stored in the muscles as glycogen and the rest is sent to your fat stores, which is a scenario that anyone trying to lose weight doesn't want.
  

• Know what ketosis and ketones really means
  
  Ketosis is when your body is actively using its fat stores (i.e., its stored energy) as its primary source of fuel. The lower your carb intake the more in ketosis you are in. Most folks define a ketogenic diet as one that is less than 25g of carbs a day; however, don't think that the lower your carbs are the more weight you will lose. This is the Atkins's hype that has everyone counting their carbs instead of calories. I don't care if you are on a zero carb diet, if you eat more calories than your body burns all those extra fat and protein calories will be stored away as fat. And no, dietary fat or fat that you eat doesn't automatically go to fat on your body. It's chemically broken down first, just as carbs and protien are.
  
  Do not buy any keto stixs, please! Guys, once you are fat adapted (again, give yourself 3-4 months of eating no more than 100g of carbs), your body will be using ketones to power your metabolic engine. So, there will be no need for them to spill over into your urine. When you are in the process of switching fuels for your body (from glucose to fat), yes you will be able to piss on keto stixs and see a change in color, but this is because your body hasn't built up the necessary hormones and enzymes to properly use all the newly formed ketones floating around in your blood. Again, we have to thank Dr. Atkins for having folks urinating on keto stixs wondering if they are in ketosis or not.
  
  
  
• Follow your nutritional roots
  
  The Agricultural or Neolithic Revolution occurred approximately 10,000 years ago, and this is when we as a species moved from a hunter-gatherer type of lifestyle to a more sedentary, farming oriented one. It is during this time that we domesticated our animals and introduced new foods into our bodies, such as cereal grains, legumes, and dairy. Up until this short time, we existed mainly eating fresh meats, veggies, roots, seeds, nuts and berries. It has been argued that our natural diet, and the one more in tune with our body's physiology, is a LC, paleolithic style diet.
  
  While this was an exciting time for us socially and politically as a species, it has wrecked havoc on our overall health and view of what a healthy diet should consist of. Hey, if for 99.8% of the time that we've been on this planet, we've done without eating cereal grains and legumes, then why is it so important to eat them now? Oh, and I'll let you in on a little nutritional secret. Cereal grains (e.g., pasta, bread, rice, etc.), whole grain or not, contain absolutely NO vitamins, minerals, macro- or micronutrients that can't be obtained from another non-cereal grain source. As Colpo mentions in his The Great Cholesterol Con, cereal grains are "nutritional weaklings" when compared to the other foods that have been a staple of our diet since we evolved on this planet.
  
  
• Finally, read Ellis and Colpo's books
  
  I know that this sounds like a shameless plug for my favorite authors, and it is. However, let me be upfront and say that I am not an affiliate for either author or with amazon.com. If you decide to buy their books, I don't get one red cent from the transaction. Yes, I know the authors and have communicated with them through email, but that's it. I'm not a paid spokesman for them or anything like that.
  
  I've read many diet and workout books over the years, and I find myself coming back to these two authors; that's why I'm so high on them and their works. People often ask me what did I do to lose the weight and how have I become so educated on the topic. Well, it's because I read and re-read these authors' works, especially Ellis's UDS, many, many times. As a matter of fact, all of my bullet points are taken from their respective works, and for a much more in-depth discussion of what I have presented here, pick up a copy of Ultimate Diet Secrets and The Great Cholesterol Con from amazon.
  
  Feel free to buy one of the many other books on LC eating out there, as I have done, but I'm sure that they'll collect dust on your shelf as mine have. Or they can make for a great snack for an overactive and mischievous English Bulldog pup--my copy of Charles Hunt's Diet Evolution will never be the same . . .
  
  

Pete: The Real Biggest Loser Counts Calories!

Guys, file this post under Mr. Low Body Fat's rant section, but I just finished watching The Biggest Loser's "Did They Keep It Off?" Special I recorded yesterday and had to point something out. I've been a fan of the show since the first season because I love how it shows how the body can be transformed through exercise and diet; however, I don't endorse any of their weight loss products or the idea that weight should be lost so quickly. Also, their focus on overall body weight loss instead of body fat loss needs to be changed.

Nevertheless, I had to say something about what Pete and his wife said. Those of you who caught the show may have overlooked it, but his wife talked about the energy balance equation, which is calories in vs calories out, that most folks nowadays are in denial about. Notice, he was the only contestant to remove his shirt to show a nice set of abs for someone who has lost well over 100lbs! And how did he do it? He counts his calories and exercises his butt off!!!!

There is no free lunch fellas. If you want to lose the weight and keep it off, realize that you will have to count your calories and exercise. Stop listening to people that tell you differently, and if they do, ask them to pull up their shirt and show you their abs, like Pete did. After watching him, I can't wait to wake up tomorrow at 5am to get my workout in before going to work!

Atkins: The Plan I love to hate . .

Fellas, I know that last week I promised to blog about why calories count and how so many folks are frustrated with all the conflicting opinions about this, especially in the low-carb (LC) community; however, this is a post that I've wanted to do for quite sometime, and it will actually lead into a longer discussion about why calories count, which I'll post next week.

OK, let me be upfront and tell you that I follow a paleo-style, low-carb diet and consider myself to be a part of the low-carb (LC) community; however, what follows here might get my LC card revoked. You see, there are many folks in the LC community who hold Dr. Atkins in an extremely high regard; hell, I really wonder do some of them have an altar in their homes dedicated to the man. Now, I'm not taking any cheap shots here because I was once a devout follower of Atkins and the way that I use to preach about my new found dietary religion to folks, you would have thought that I was studying to become a priest of the church of St. Atkins. Looking back, I was more than just a follower; I was a fanatic . . .

I like to call 2004, the second year of my weight loss journey, the year of Atkins. It was an exciting time for the LC community. Low-carb mania had definitely hit a good stride, and the food industry was more than happy to accommodate the horde of new low-carbers. I had lost more than 40lbs. following Atkins plan in less than six months and was convinced that, as he states in his Atkins New Diet Revolution, that calories didn't count; it's all about counting your grams of carbs.

2004 was an interesting year for me because I was a newlywed and was enjoying my new family and new house. After dropping to my lowest weight in years, I was a devout follower of Atkins and bought any and all Atkins products I could get my hands on. Oh, I ate Atkins cereal, muffins, breakfast bars, bread, etc. If it had the infamous red A on it, I tried it. I was convinced that I would continue to drop weight, by simply counting my carbs.

I just couldn't believe that I was able to eat so many foods that had been demonized by the mainstream press and medical establishment and still lose weight. There were times when I believed that it was just too good to be true. I felt great, had energy, and was even trying to convince my overweight friends that they should read Atkins's book for themselves and forget simply listening to his critics.

I watched with excitement as the food industry started to shake in its boots over the many low-carb converts and how their bottom line was being affected. Hearing Krispy Kreme and the OJ industry cry about falling quarter numbers made my day. Also, the new low-carb offerings at my favorite fast-food places made me proud to be part of the low-carb revolution; however, there was just one problem: I stopped losing weight and hit a major plateau!

No matter how much I cut my carbs, I still could not break through the plateau, and I couldn't understand why. I re-read Atkins's book and decided that I needed to simply keep my carbs at the induction level of no more than 20g a day. I was already exercising 3-4 days a week on my elliptical machine, my keto stixs were kinda pink, which, according to Atkins, meant that I was in ketosis, so it was a big mystery to me.

Since I was fitting into clothes I had put away years ago, I really didn't mind the slow, or should I say, no weight loss until 2004 ended and the new year rolled around, and I had lost a grand total of 5 pounds for the entire year! That's right, in 12 months I had lost a measly 5 pounds while eating no more than 20 grams of carbs daily. Now, keep in mind that these are net carbs that I'm talking about because I was more than happy to eat my LC ice cream, cookies, and candy bars--LC Atkins reese's cups clones were my favorite. I really didn't care that these "alcohol sugars" had me running to the bathroom like someone taking Alli; I just couldn't believe that I was eating the forbidden fruits and still losing weight . . . or was I?

I had fooled myself for an entire year, eating all kinds of processed LC junkfood, believing in the net-carb "scam", and not counting calories, only to finally come to grips with the fact that I had lost only 5 pounds in one year. So, either it was me, the diet, or a little bit of both. I really didn't care, all I wanted to do was to start losing weight again. So, since I consider myself a sane person, I couldn't keep doing the same thing expecting a different result.

2005 became the year that I dropped Atkins and discovered Dr. Ellis's Ultimate Diet Secrets, Anthony Colpo's The Omnivore website, Dr. Wolfgang Lutz's Life Without Bread, and re-read Ray Audette's Neanderthin with a much more open mind.

(... to be continued)

The Real Goal of Weight Loss (Part II)

The real goal of any weight loss program should be to lose as much body fat as you can and not simply weight on the scale. If you are judging the success of your program by simply using how much weight you've lost on the scale, then you are missing out on the health benefits that go along with having a body fat percentage within proper ranges (21-24% for women and 14-17% for men).

There are many ways that you can determine your body fat percentage, and some are more accurate than others. This site gives you all of the different methods that are currently used with a write up on the pros and cons of each one. Personally, I use digital calipers and the free body fat calculator at www.mybodycomp.com to determine my body fat percentage. Now, before you rush to the website, let me warn you that the webmaster(s) there has not been keeping the site up to date and many people have reported errors trying to sign up for a free account. I like this calculator because it's the only one I've come across on the web that you have to input approximately 12 measurements to determine your body fat %. So, if you are able to sign up for an account, make sure to have a measuring tape handy. I plan on getting my body fat % tested using Hydrodensitometry Weighing (Underwater Weighing) and DEXA before the year is out. Of course I'll report my results here.

(*Update: mybodycomp.com is no longer available. Use shapefit.com or fitday.com)

To maximize your body fat loss and minimize losing your lean body mass (i.e., muscle), you need to focus on muscle building exercises and following a diet that causes your body to use more of its stored fat than muscle.

Guys, what I've found to be the ticket as far as muscle building exercises go is to perform compound exercises, which work more than one muscle group at time, using free weights and following a simple workout routine. Unless you are considering participating in the sport of bodybuilding, I suggest you drop all of the isolation exercises like tricep pushdowns or lat pull-downs and replace them with dips and pull-ups. Real men do dips and pull-ups as far as I'm concerned . . .

Learning how to properly bench press, squat, military press, and deadlift will take you a long way to getting the body you've always wanted. Also, I would drop the 3 sets of 10 reps that we've been taught since high school in favor or less reps, more sets (depending on your goals), and using heavier weights. A great book to understand this concept is Pavel's Power to the People.

As far as diet is concerned, there is no better one to follow than a low-carb diet, and no, I'm not talking about Atkins's version either. I follow a paleo-style, low-carb diet, and eat whole foods, not the processed low-carb junk food that many LC diet plans promote. However, I'm not a zealot about following a low-carb lifestyle, nor do I think it is the only diet that someone needs to follow to get lean. In losing and gaining weight, calories count more than the composition of the diet; but, to optimize the weight loss process and to have the majority of your lost weight be body fat, going paleo/low-carb (no more than 100g of carbs daily) is the best way to go. To those who are truly interested in why this is the case, there are three books that I suggest you read:

Ultimate Diet Secrets (Lite Version) by Dr. Gregory Ellis
Neanderthin by Ray Audette
Fat Loss Bible by Anthony Colpo

These three authors have had the greatest impact on my understanding the process of attaining a lean and sculpted body. They all clearly practice what they preach and don't make excuses for it. They are considered controversial, arrogant, and eccentric by many, and I would tend to agree. But, I could care less about that because they all focus on getting results! And that's what my blog is all about--achieving and maintaining results.

Next week, I'll address the often debated issue of what's more important in losing weight, counting calories, carbs, or fat consumed.

The Real Goal of Weight Loss (Part I)

Last week, I talked about not fearing the scale and not being emotional about the whole process; however, I have to also warn you not to become obsessed with the scale either. Remember it's just one tool amongst many that you will use. Actually, body weight is not the best way to determine if you are on your way to having that svelte physique you've always wanted.

The scale, unfortunately, becomes a trap for many guys because that's the only way they determine if their program is working. "If I'm losing weight on the scale, then it's all good, right?" Well, not necessarily.

The goal of any weight loss program should be to lose as much body fat as possible, while sparing as much lean body mass (i.e., muscle) as you can. If you just go by the scale, then you have no idea if the pounds you're losing are actually fat or muscle. Let me give you a personal example.

Back in 2000, I reached a high of 288lbs. and felt that I needed to do something about my expanding waistline. So, since I live so close to the Mexico-US border, I made a run for it to go and visit a weight loss doctor. After taking all my vitals, and even hooking me up to an EKG machine, the doctor went over my new eating plan--which was a moderate low-carb diet similar to Sugar Busters--and prescribed a three month supply of weight loss pills.

Man, did those pills work. I had energy for days, and the very thought of food made me want to puke. As expected, I lost weight and lost it rather quickly. I would eat one solid meal a day (usually lunch) and had to literally force myself to drink two meal replacement shakes. I really didn't care whether this was healthy or not because the scale was telling me that it was working, and I had the energy to do 45 minutes to an hour on the elliptical machine five days a week. I would play around with the weight machines for 20-25 minutes after my cardio, but my main focus was doing cardio and watching the scale.

I lost more than 40lbs taking what I later found out to be phen-phen, and I was fitting clothes I hadn't been able to in years. However, there was just one problem: my body was extremely soft and pudgy; I also had saggy man boobs to boot! Yes, I was happy that I was lighter and could fit smaller sized clothes, but I hated the fact that without clothes, I felt and looked like a smaller version of Jabba the Hut.

Well, it was 60lbs and a couple of years later that I realized why my body was as soft as a baby's ass. You see, I never worried about whether I was losing muscle or body fat; all I cared about was losing weight on the scale. So, through my starvation diet and tons of cardio, I effectively burned more of my lean body mass than body fat.

Fellas, do not fall into this trap. To be healthy and to have a body that you, as well as others, will admire, you want the majority of your lost weight to be body fat and not muscle.

In part II, I'll explain techniques you can use to maximize fat loss while minimizing muscle loss. I'll also talk about the different ways to go about measuring your body fat percentage. Until then, here's a pix of me after regaining the weight I lost, and the 20+ friends they brought along with them.

Oh, just in case you were wondering, yes that's a chocolate candy bar I have in my hand. Damn, you'd think that I'd at least hide it, huh?

Mr. Low Body Fat's story featured @ shapefit.com

The good folks at shapefit.com have highlighted my transformation as one of their weight loss success stories. If you need motivation, please visit the other success stories and read just how regular men and women have lost the weight and kept it off. Also, there are many free and beneficial online weight loss tools available at the site for you to use.

weight loss is 80% mental

The first steps to any process or meaningful change is usually the hardest, but that's not always the case. I've always felt that many times this first step is difficult, especially when losing weight, because many guys want to lose weight without having a clearly defined plan of action. Fellas, I know many of us are the type who hate maps and don't even try to get us to ask for directions! I'm the same way, to a certain degree, and will drive around town learning from my many wrong turns; nevertheless, do yourself a favor and not make the same macho mistakes when you're trying to lose weight.

OK, so you need to lose weight, right? Well, what's the first thing that you should do?

Get a gym membership?

Nope.

Buy the latest fat burner you saw on TV?

No.

Pull out your old high school football shorts (which you probably can't wear anymore) and go for a run?

You're joking, right?

Start eating more salads?

Not quite.

Well, what should be the first step?

Go to the bathroom and strip to your birthday suit. Hopefully, you have a full size mirror in there so you can see the majority of your naked body. Look at yourself, analyze where your body stores the majority of your fat and trace your stretch marks with your finger to see where they start and end. I don't know about you, but I love my stretch marks!

Don't be disgusted with what you see because, fat or not, this is the only body you're going to have in this life, and you need to start getting to know it intimately. So, instead of the usual thoughts like "How did I let myself get this big?" or "What was I thinking to eat myself into this body?" look yourself in the eyes and ask yourself if you are ready to make a permanent change. Don't look away and fake it like you really mean it this time; be honest with yourself. You can lie to everyone else around you, but there has to be no more lying to yourself.

If you're not ready for the journey, be man enough to admit it and put your clothes back on. You'll be back in the mirror before you know it; it's just not your time right now. No, I'm not giving you an excuse to remain a fat ass, I'm just being realistic. Fellas, listen, if you're not mentally ready to start a weight loss program, then why waste your time and effort to diet for a little while, just to regain the weight?

When you're ready to make the change, you'll have to be mentally ready for the challenges and lessons ahead. Your body will do what you tell it to, so until you're ready to work that muscle in between your ears, go grab another cold one, plop back down on the couch, and see if Barry Bonds is going to extend his record. Cheers.

OK, so what's up with the pixs?

I think that it's worth explaining why I have so many pixs of me during my weight loss journey in my underwear. Since I had made up my mind that 2003 was going to be the year that I would literally get my weight under control, I figured that I needed more motivation this time. Going up and down with my weight had been a recurring theme for the last couple of years for me, and I felt that I was more than ready to make a sustainable change. So, what do we usually do when we need help fellas? Reach out to your homies, right? Well, I was just the average Joe Couch Potato, and I did just that.

My buddies and brother were more than happy to help me with not only their encouragement, but we would also start an online weight loss club! Since, I've always been more of a wannabe techie, I took on the job of building the website and setting up the forum. Since my cheap ass used a free service (thanks bravenet), it didn't take long to have our club up and running.

Everyone was pretty stoked about starting because we had all put on more weight than we were happy with and knew it was time for a change. There were six of us in the club, and the forums had many interesting conversations about water weight, experiences taking fat burners, which I was very interested in, to trying to get a six-pack. The ideas were being exchanged, and I had motivation that I hadn't felt in sometime. So, I was the first one to recommend that we all post a before shot of ourselves; however, I told them that they should be like men and take it without their shirts.

Hey, I can't throw down the gauntlet like that and not be the first one to upload my pixs even though my girlfriend--at the time--told me not to because "they're going to laugh at you." I knew she was right, but I was over 300lbs., and I needed something to motivate my fat ass to stay the course. So, I hit the send button and sent these pixs:

I was 296lbs when I took these pixs; I didn't have the nerve to send pixs of me when I was part of the 300lb. club. What stands out most in my mind while looking at these pixs is that I really did not think I was that fat. I think that I, like many of you guys, have been so use to being overweight that you really have a distorted view of your body size or just how large you really are. I thought that I was just a Big Boy or a Big Dawg that needed to eat a man's size portion. Hell, I took pride in wearing XXL because I didn't want to be skinny, I would tell myself.

Well fellas, I hate to tell you this, but if you're wearing a size 46+ pants size and/or haven't seen your Willy in a while when you take a leak, then let me assure you, without ever laying eyes on your naked body, that you're fat and you have a lot of body fat to lose. So, stop flexing your man boobs and chunky arms imagining that you're buff because you're not! But, that's OK for right now, just stop kidding yourself and start a more honest relationship with yourself.

I know I did, and it started the minute I uploaded my pixs to the website. Like my girlfriend predicted, I'm sure they laughed at me behind their monitors, thinking, "Shit, there's no way in hell I'm going to do that!". Yeah, and no one else posted a pix to our online club, which, as you can imagine, didn't last too long after I was left hanging.

Nevertheless, what I didn't plan on being a side effect from being dissed by my homies, and even my own brother, is that it made me realize, "Damn dude you're on your own!". Throughout your weight loss journey guys, you are going to be alone, so start to mentally prepare yourself for this.